Texas Rangers baseball and more, by Scott Lucas

January 19, 2005

Almanzar signed

Texas signed reliever CARLOS ALMANZAR to a one-year, $1.1 million contract, avoiding arbitration.

As usual, John Hart avoids the potential for acrimony by signing all the arbitration-eligible players to contracts prior to the hearings. A wise practice in genenal, though the $1.8 million bestowed upon Rod Barajas still baffles me.

So, barring additional signings and trades, Texas looks to imitate the 2003 Angels, going into the season with a roster largely similar to the prior year. The '03 Angels fell very hard after their World Series victory. That isn't necessarily an indictment of the Rangers' relative inactivity, as the '02 Angels enjoyed good health and a covey of career years, while the '03 Angels enjoyed neither.